While unnecessary to enjoy the game, these planets open up some great new doors. Utopian planets can really shake up the tech race, and Prestige planets, with their 6VP, are a powerful resource for empires that seek to gather and flip as many planets as possible.

These planets are absolutely essential to the game. They provide new avenues to victory including quicker access to the deeper tech tree. I play with these every single game even when introducing the game to newcomers.

The prestige planets alone open up more strategic options in the main game and give Survey meaning in the late game. The utopian planets help with getting the advanced tech without relying on Survey. A great little addition to an already good game.